A system in which a master device is coupled to multiple slave devices may be implemented using a TDMA protocol, such that access to the medium coupling the devices is time-multiplexed among the devices. For example, the master device allocates bandwidth among the slave devices and assigns corresponding dedicated time slots to respective slave devices during which the respective slave devices may transmit. The TDMA protocol may allow for contention-based time slots, in which devices may compete for transmission bandwidth. Contention-based time slots, however, reduce the time available for dedicated time slots and thus may reduce transmission throughput and efficiency in the system.
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